Starting the last weekend of May and continuing nearly every weekend until Oct. 14, the Truckee Donner Land Trust will be offering more than 40 free, docent-led hikes on 11 of the trust's properties.The hikes range from family-friendly, easy hikes through Perazzo and Lacey Meadows, to a strenuous climb up Mount Lola, the highest peak in Nevada County.

"The idea is to introduce people to more properties and educate them on what they're seeing," said Linda Slattery, Truckee Donner Land Trust administrator. "We want to protect and preserve the land but make it available for public use."Now in its third year of operation, the program is fully booked for every weekend in June, and still accepting registrations for the remaining weekends. This year the program has expanded to offer hikes on 11 of the properties as opposed to only three in past years, while capping each trip at 25 hikers accompanied by four guides.

“We want to protect and preserve the land but make it available for public use.”— Linda Slattery, Truckee Donner Land Trust Administrator

The program has continued to offer more hikes each year moving up from 30 scheduled hikes in 2017. With an army of 50 volunteer docents, Slattery hopes this will provide a better ratio of guides to hikers than in past years, while making less of an impact on the land."Last year the hikes got a little too big and it was hard for the docents to keep control of people," said Slattery. "We have to be sensitive to nature still."While Mount Lola's 11-mile round trip leads hikers through the wildflower-covered Cold Stream Meadow, ascending a total of 2,500 feet to reach panoramic views of the Sierra Crest, Perazzo meadows offers an easy stroll above the little Truckee River with a mild 400 feet elevation gain."We have hikes geared towards every skill level," Slattery stated.Other hikes include the Lower Carpenter Valley trail, a 5-mile moderate hike through a lush valley rich with wildlife. As the Land Trust has just acquired the land in 2017, it can only be accessed through guided hikes until trails and public parking are fully installed allowing the trails to be open to the public in 2020.In addition to the scheduled day time hikes, a moonlight hike will be offered Saturday, Aug. 11, as well as a mountain bike trip in early September.Anyone can register on the Truckee Donner Land Trust website and view a full schedule of the hikes. Participants are asked to wear closed-toed shoes suitable for hiking and to bring bug spray, sunscreen and plenty of water. As weather conditions may vary throughout the season they ask that participants pay attention to the forecasts and bring rain or cold weather gear if needed.(Photo credit: Truckee Donner Land Trust)

FOR YOUR INFORMATIONRegister for the Truckee Donner Land Trust summer hike series at http://www.tdlandtrust.org or call 530-582-4711.